Applying for CRICOS registration

On this page

Before getting started

Registering as a CRICOS provider requires extensive planning, documentation and resource allocation. You should expect your initial application to take between six and nine months to be assessed.

Before getting started, make sure you understand your obligations under the Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Framework, in particular your responsibility for approving and monitoring the accommodation, support and welfare arrangements for unaccompanied international students aged under 18 years.

Assessing your application

It can take between six and nine months for an application to be assessed. This is done over four stages.

Stages

Stage 1 Check

We will make sure your application is complete and contact you if:

you have not answered all required questions on the application form

you have not included all the required evidence.

Stage 2
Assessment

​Once your application fee is paid, we will review the evidence provided in your application and prepare a report.

Based on the report, we may ask you to meet with us. You will be given one opportunity to address and rectify any issues identified in the report within an appropriate timeframe.

Stage 3
Site visit

We will schedule a site visit to make sure your organisation has the relevant systems and resources in place to provide education services to international students. At the site visit, we may consider:

the integrity of your marketing material and the information you provide to students, including transfers between providers, complaints and appeals

how you monitor progress and attendance so that students complete their course within the expected timeframe

how international students have been included in your response to Victoria’s child safe standards

whether staff, facilities and equipment are appropriate for delivering courses to international students.

Stage 4Decision

​In making a decision on your application, we will consider the evidence from the assessment, any rectification action, the site visit, and your registration history.

We may consider if a course is suitable for international students, or any other matters relating to your organisation’s management and operations.

If we approve your application, we will recommend to the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training that it register your school or organisation, and its courses, on CRICOS, if it is satisfied that all requirements have been met.

Remember, you can only start offering courses to international students once CRICOS registration is complete.